Against the Wall
by LaheyLydia
Summary: Lydia had always been strong and sure of herself while Isaac hid behind others. When Jackson leaves Lydia, she is shattered and reduced to a person that nobody can reach. A long extinguished crush causes Isaac to reach out to her. Can the quiet boy with the depressing past bring the confident genius back to herself?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: It's not exactly AU but it doesn't follow all the plot lines from the show. It's pretty simple to understand though. **

**Thanks for reading!**

Isaac watched as Lydia stumbled into the room. Red hair piled on top of her head, a frown decorating her face. "Alcohol?" She spit out after struggling to find the room. She was obviously already drunk, with unfocused eyes and a general wobble to her actions.

Allison crossed the room to her, taking her to the couch to sit with a quiet sigh. She looked up and eyed Scott, conveying to the rest of the group that this wasn't a new development. They were in the middle of a pack meeting; one which Lydia had not been invited to due to the delicate subject. Jackson had left Lydia a few days after his big confession of love. He went to London and while there he "found himself". And a new blonde girl every night to heal his obviously broken heart.

Lydia hadn't taken it well. To see Lydia without red eyes and tear-stained cheeks was rare that summer. She didn't show her face much in public and Allison had to sleep over nearly every night to make sure that Lydia was taking care of herself. The rest of the group had ignored it as much as possible except when she was near and it became impossible to ignore her shrinking body and spirit. Now that school was back in session though, her perfect appearance had returned as easily as it had been discarded. Nobody suspected that Lydia was heartbroken and depressed as she strutted down the school hallways, eyeing all the new guys but touching none. She had sworn off men but Lydia knew that to the public that would mean that Jackson had ruined her. She couldn't let herself be seen as _that _girl. That girl that gets dumped by one guy and suddenly it's the end of the world.

So Lydia flirted with them and went on dates with them, but let none of them get as much as a kiss out of her. She couldn't find it in herself to let somebody else touch her lips after Jackson.

"Lydia honey, I thought we talked about this." Allison said quietly, her voice echoing around the silence in Derek's apartment. Lydia ignored her, trying to make eye contact with Derek but instead resting her eyes on Isaac, standing directly behind his Alpha. "You're twenty one or something." She said pointedly.

Isaac resisted the happiness rising in him as she looked straight at him. When he was younger, and he had his little crush on her, just getting her to look at him would be his whole goal for a week. Not a word needed to be spoken, only a look. Her green eyes had powers on him for years, even surpassing the time when his crush ended, when he had learned that Lydia Martin did not date small curly haired abused children. Only perfectly put together people like Jackson. He sometimes suspected that her eyes would never lose their power over him. An idea that was reiterated in the way his stomach flopped when she looked at him just now. He ignored it however, crossing his arms and glancing down at the table in front of him which contained plans mapped out. Stiles' neat handwriting decorated each drawing, elaborate ideas spread out of how the kanima came to be and how it ceased to be.

Derek ignored Lydia's question. "Get her out of here." He said sharply to Allison, turning back to the table. Scott glared at his turned form for being sharp with Allison, but begged her with his eyes to listen. Lydia ignored them all. "What are you looking at?" She demanded, getting up from the couch to make her way over to the table between Derek and Isaac.

"Lydia I'm sorry but no." Allison said putting some edge to her voice. Nobody wanted Lydia to be reminded of Jackson. "I'm putting you to bed." Allison looked over to Scott.

"Um, yeah, Isaac's room is on the right." Scott stumbled trying to think of where to put her. Derek would kill him if he put her in his room. Isaac glanced sharply up but Allison had already led Lydia down the hall. "Sorry dude." Scott said shrugging as if it was beyond his control. "No problem." Isaac mumbled, looking over at Stiles who was staring longingly down the hall towards Lydia.

"Let's just move on." Derek said, still glaring at the plans as though they were withholding the information that he needed. "I think that Lydia's love saved Jackson." Scott said. Stiles and Derek both groaned at that. It was an idea that Scott had brought up so often that what follows pretty much plays out like a well known script. This time however Isaac spoke up. "I agree with Scott." Stiles and Derek both looked up at him, Derek with a thoughtful expression. "Fine, let's say that Lydia somehow does manage to save Jackson with her 'love'". Derek said spitting out the word love as if it hurt him to even think about. "That doesn't change the fact that he started as a kanima, not a werewolf." He eyed Scott proudly, winning the argument. "Maybe his lack of love before caused him to take on a creature that confused control with love." Isaac suggested, thinking of his own father. His father loved him, he still believed that in a weird way. He was just disappointed by Isaac too much. "But he had his adopted parents." Stiles added. Isaac just shrugged and looked down.

Scott stifled a sigh when he saw his friend shut down. Isaac just didn't have enough confidence sometimes and Scott fully blamed Isaac's dad. "Let's just call it a night." Derek said with a frustrated growl.

Stiles and Scott quickly left, leaving just Isaac, Derek, Allison and a sleeping Lydia. Allison came back out shortly after Scott had left. "Where's Scott?" She asked looking around the apartment as if he was hiding. "He and Stiles left." Derek said barely glancing at her. "Okay then." She said looking annoyed and marching out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her. Isaac fidgeted nervously, unsure of what to do with the beautiful redhead in his bed.

"Where are Boyd and Erica?" He asked Derek, making his way over to the couch. Derek glanced at him but then returned his stare to the ideas in front of him. "Date night." He answered flippantly. "They've also decided to get an apartment together but that's a conversation for a different day." "But they're sixteen!" Isaac exclaimed in surprise. Derek sighed. "I know. And they're acting like children but there's not too much I can do about it. I'm not their father." Isaac nodded.

He had recently come to see Derek as a father figure for him. Living in the apartment with Erica and Boyd and Derek made them feel like a little family to him although he would never tell any of them that. Maybe Scott but never Derek. With them gone, their family was being split.

Derek looked over at the silent Isaac and misread the morose look on his face. "I don't like the pack being split up either. We're stronger together and it's easier to protect everyone." Isaac just nodded again, trying to look reassured. Derek sighed, unsure of what to do when Isaac closed off like he often did. Scott always knew how to bring him back but not Derek.

"Night." Derek said quickly heading off to his room. Alone in the living room, Isaac eyed the door to his own room. He snuck over to the door and opened it a crack. Lydia was in his bed, all tucked in with her red hair spread across his pillow. Just like the fantasies he used to allow himself to have about her until very recently. Except instead of next to her in his bed he was in the hallway looking at her sleep like a creep.

His heart rate escalated as he inched the door open and walked into the room to grab his sweatpants. Halfway there, he risked a glance at her and stopped dead when he saw her eyes open. "And just _what_ do you think that you're doing." She asked sweetly, looking perfectly at home in his bed.

"My sweatpants." He stuttered out in explanation.

"I'm trying to sleep here." His anger flared up but he put a cap on it, instead looking down. She sighed. "Well now I feel like I just kicked a puppy."

He looked up at her and she had deflated, her face sinking into sadness and her eyes welling up with tears. Jackson would have fought with her. He would have swore and yelled and she would have loved every second of it. She didn't love making Isaac feel bad. It was his room after all, something Lydia could respect.

"I'm sorry." She sputtered out, not sounding all that sorry. "No need." He said smoothly, and quietly. He stared at her and she stared back not saying anything, just willing the tears to disappear from her eyes.

"You guys were talking about Jackson." It wasn't a question and Isaac blanched at the directness of the statement.

"I'm not stupid." She added unnecessarily.

Isaac knew she wasn't stupid. He had watched her effortlessly excel in classes for years and yet act like another stupid girl when it came to everyone else. Those guys didn't notice her intelligence but he did. And he noticed when years later she pretended to be another idiot and was awarded Jackson, the best that Beacon Hills had to offer.

The resentment welled up inside of him but all that he conveyed was a slight change in his face, almost a twitch but not quite. Lydia noticed though.

"You do that a lot." She said, again without a questioning tone. He considered ignoring her and just leaving the room, not ready for a conversation involving pretty much anything but it was Lydia and so he was rooted to his spot.

"Do what?" He questioned, leaning back against the wall as she sat up further in his bed.

"Hide something. I haven't quite figured out what it is yet but I will." She cocked her head to the side, considering him and his reaction but he conveyed nothing. "I mean obviously you react to nothing but there's something else to you that I just can't put my finger on." She lifted said finger and raised it to her lips in consideration and she stared at him more forcefully. Then suddenly, she shrugged. "Whatever."

With a wave of her hand, Lydia fell back into the bed and back asleep. Isaac grabbed his sweatpants and stepped out of the room leaving an asleep and tearless Lydia in his bed.


	2. Chapter 2

"Wake up." Isaac was firmly awakened by a very bored looking Lydia. "That's better." She commented looking around the loft.

"Where's Derek?" Isaac asked, rubbing his eyes as he looked towards the window and the sun assaulted his eyes. Lydia strode across the room to sit at the counter Derek that had set up. She shrugged, glancing away from Isaac giving him time to appraise her. She was still wearing the same outfit that she had been wearing yesterday, a look which was very unusual for Lydia.

"Will you stop looking at me." She snapped, turning quickly back to him. Isaac looked down quickly, a slight blush coloring his cheeks. She sighed. "Look, I'm just waiting around for somebody to give me a ride home." Her voice was gentler this time and Isaac glanced up to meet her eyes. The green felt softer as she looked at him.

"Well I don't have a car."Isaac told her, feeling bad. Maybe she would be stranded in the apartment though and he could get to know her. If he found the ability to talk around her which didn't seem likely. He always felt tongue tied around her. He doubted that anything he said would make him seem half as appealing as Jackson had been.

"I know that." She said impatiently with an eye roll, pulling Isaac from his thoughts. Isaac felt like a stupid kid, fantasizing the same way he had when he had been young. That Lydia would one day look at him and think he was worthy of her heart. It was laughable now. Her heart had been shattered and it didn't look likely to be mended anytime soon.

"Allison took my cell phone last night-"

"Because you were drunk." He added. He quickly regretted it as her gaze landed back on him. It wasn't an angry stare but it felt piercing against his skin. Isaac fidgeted and returned her gaze.

"Yes. I was drunk." She said it slowly and dismissively, as if it didn't really need to be mentioned, which it probably didn't. Isaac wasn't quite sure why he did call her out on it, only that he was glad to have spoken up to her in some way. It was a tiny victory for himself. "So can I use your phone?" She finished, raising her brow at him already expecting his answer.

He got off of his makeshift bed on the couch and went to his room without answering. Lydia followed him loudly down the hallway. "Well can I?" She asked sounding annoyed. Isaac fished it out of his nightstand and put it in her hand.

"We both knew the answer to that." He said quietly, leaving her alone in his room again.

x

"How was she last night? I didn't mean to leave her." Allison charged into the apartment looking around for Lydia but speaking in a hushed tone.

"She just slept all night." Isaac answered, almost shutting the door on Scott who followed Allison into the apartment.

Lydia strode out of his room and huffed. "Well finally. Let's go." She marched past everyone and out the door without so much as a thank you to Isaac. He knew her better than to expect one but it still made him feel a slight twinge of anger. And sadness. Sadness that she wouldn't or couldn't appreciate that Isaac had given something, even something as small as his bed for one night, up for her.

Allison sighed, her gaze shifting to Isaac. "I'm sorry." She pleaded with Isaac to understand. "It's just how she is."

Isaac nodded, understanding that Lydia had come to expect things from people without every really appreciating them for it. Her eyes met Scott's then. "I'll meet you out at the car?" He grinned from ear to ear at her and nodded. Allison left the room, leaving just Scott and Isaac.

"You two back together?" Isaac commented.

"Yah." Scott's smile wouldn't leave his face as he thought about Allison's kiss last night but he forced himself to focus on his friend in front of him. "It was really great of you to watch over Lydia like that last night." He said and Isaac shrugged it off.

"It was a favor for a friend." He glanced pointedly at Scott who nodded in agreement.

"I hoped maybe you two would actually grow closer. I mean, I know you used to have a little crush on her." Scott goaded and Isaac looked down.

"That was a long time ago." He said seriously.

"But she's around a lot now."

"It's not like that anymore." He said almost pleading with Scott to understand. And Scott did. Scott saw that Isaac still saw himself as the small child that the little redhead had shut down. Isaac didn't see that he had grown up to be so much more than he was as a child. Scott saw, and Derek saw, but Isaac didn't.

"Where is Derek?" Scott wondered out loud.

Isaac shrugged. "I haven't seen him and Lydia didn't know."

Scott scanned the apartment again as if Derek might pop out from behind the sofa. "Well, call me when he gets in." He said as he left, trying not to display to Isaac how worried he was.

x

Derek opened the door a few long hours later to find Isaac doing pushups on the floor, listening to his music. He glanced up and paused what he was doing.

"Where were you?" He questioned, gasping for breath through his words.

"Out." Derek said cryptically. He sat down at the table with his head in his hands. Isaac glanced over at him from his spot on the floor but shot Scott a quick text before heading over to Derek.

"Are you injured?" He questioned, looking Derek quickly over for cuts.

"No Isaac I'm not." Isaac just stared at him and Derek let out an exaggerated sigh. "Quit staring at me." He snapped and Isaac walked over to the fridge to grab him some water. "It's this girl." Derek finally said and Isaac smirked at him. All this freaking out over a girl. Isaac was tempted to call it childish, but he remembered the way his heard skipped a beat at the sight of Lydia in his bed. A girl that Isaac had barely talked to.

"Who?" He asked sounding casual.

"Nobody. A teacher." Isaac nodded, looking disinterested with the smirk still on his face.

"The new one?" He questioned. Derek lifted his head to glare at him which was answer enough for him. "How'd you meet her?"

"I was looking for Scott. He wasn't in school today and he was supposed to call me."

"He's probably with Allison." Isaac offered. Derek rolled his eyes.

"They're back together?" Isaac just shrugged and nodded slightly. A few minutes passes as Derek drank the water that Isaac had given him. "I met her at the school while I was there." Derek continued.

"She's very pretty." Isaac said and Derek just glared at him. "Forget it."

"Forget what? That girl you have a crush on?" A brunette strode into the room, a teasing light in her eyes. She was pretty, not in a Lydia obvious way but in a gentler way. She didn't look at Isaac as Derek switched his glare to her.

"I do not have a crush on her." He said sternly. "And that's the last I want to hear about it." He said ending the conversation for the time being. Isaac glanced curiously at the girl who stared back at him.

"Derek hasn't introduced us but I'm Cora." She said sticking her hand out. Isaac took it. It was soft in his and he met her gaze calmly, realizing who she must be.

"Derek's sister." Isaac finished for her releasing her hand.

"That's me." She smiled at him and Derek glared at the both of them.

"Cora's moving in. She'll take the empty room across from yours." Derek didn't say anything but the unspoken rule hung between them and Isaac awkwardly cleared his throat.

Cora just winked and walked out to look at her new room. Isaac sat there wondering who this new girl is and if she could possibly take the place of the redhead currently possessing his thoughts.


	3. Chapter 3

About a week after Cora moved in, everyone found themselves in Derek's apartment. They all hovered around the table on which sat more information about Jackson for the second time in about as many weeks.

Lydia hadn't been invited to the meeting but Allison's eyes kept shifting towards the doorway. She had slipped and told Lydia where she was going tonight and wouldn't put it past her friend to show up.

Stiles was arguing with Derek, a common occurrence. He wanted to just forget about Jackson and move on to the more ominous Alpha pack. Derek thought there was something more important in Jackson's case.

Isaac personally didn't care. On most nights, he was engaged in the conversation, although not as vocally as some. Tonight however, he found his focus wandering away from the conversation on to what Lydia could be doing. Maybe she was out with one of the Alpha twins. He had heard Allison and Scott discussing her relationship with the Aiden. It angered him that Lydia would stoop that low. The Alpha was no good for her. He was no good for anybody really. Especially not alive. But nobody would listen to Isaac as he cautioned them to kill him and end it. It wouldn't be too difficult. They'd never expect an attack in school, but anytime he brought it up to Scott he was met by a sharp no. Scott still trusted Stiles too much in Isaac's opinion.

He wasn't particularly bothered by their friendship, but Stiles just couldn't have the instincts that Isaac and Scott did. He wasn't a werewolf, a point which Isaac had continuously brought up to Scott in their arguments about killing the werewolf.

"Derek let's just drop this whole deal with the pretty boy." Cora's voice rose over Stiles and jarred Isaac from his thoughts.

The last week had been strange around the loft. He and Derek had found their pattern that worked for them, but having Cora messed it all up. Neither of them seemed to know how to act around her, despite her being Derek's sister. Isaac had never been particularly great around girls and Cora especially put him on an edge. She was blunt and strong, something that intimidated Isaac greatly and had left him unable to speak to Lydia Martin for most of his life. Lydia and Cora were both strong and intimidating, although in different ways. Cora strived to be physically strong in a way that forced people to fear her. Lydia was more manipulative. She used her wits to control people, which was a different strength and probably more terrifying in Isaac's opinion.

"Finally!" Stiles exclaimed pointing at Cora triumphantly.

Derek just glared at her. "Stay out of this."

"Why?" She shot back. "Shouldn't we be trying to figure out why these alphas are here? Isn't that more important than this stupid boy who isn't even in the country anymore?"

"I agree with the girl. Whoever she is." Lydia's voice echoed around the apartment as everybody turned to look at her. Nobody had noticed Lydia standing at the entrance to the loft. "I'm getting tired of not being asked to these things." She said looking around at the faces of the closest things she had to friends. And the girl that she didn't know.

Lydia examined the new girl with a tilt of her head and narrowed eyes. She noted how she stood between Derek and Isaac like she just moved in with their little family.

"Cora." The girl informed her, not too kindly.

"Lydia _what_ are you doing here!" Stiles exclaimed from his spot next to Derek.

"Allison informed me of the little meeting and I wanted to be here to tell you to drop the whole Jackson thing." Lydia's eyes narrowed as they fell on Cora once again. "But I see that opinion has already been voiced."

Nobody said anything for a few seconds before Derek let out a dramatic sigh. "Fine. We drop Jackson." Stiles' eyes glinted with victory as he looked around the room. Nobody's face reflected his happiness at his victory. Everyone else was noting the tension between Cora and Lydia who looked like they were having a stare down. Isaac cleared his throat awkwardly in the tension filled silence.

Cora smiled softly looking up at Isaac's clear blue eyes. She had watched him around the apartment as he tried to make himself as small and unnoticeable as possible. Even when she insisted that it was his home first he merely shrugged it off before disappearing into his room. He was beautiful though with his curls and angelic face. She found herself lifting her hand to push a curl back.

"_Isaac can I talk to you_." Lydia's voice pierced through the silence and froze Cora's hand before it got to the stray curl. The smile fell off Cora's face and she pretended to have been lifting back her hand to push back her own hair. Her gaze shifted to the papers while Lydia's lit up with satisfaction.

Isaac hadn't been looking at Cora but Lydia had. She had seen Cora's hand raise towards Isaac's face with that smile on her face. How dare she walk into this apartment and act as though Lydia's group was hers. Lydia did not want to see fragile Isaac with _that girl_. She was mean and rough and would most likely hurt him.

Isaac crossed the room quickly with his long legs and towered over her looking for an explanation. She beckoned him down the hallway where the others couldn't hear them. Isaac's heart was pounding out of his chest.

"Look I don't want you getting involved with that girl." Lydia said turning around and crossing her arms to mirror Isaac's.

He blanched in surprise. "W-What?" He asked incredulously.

"You heard me. You two do not happen." Lydia said her face turned upwards to look into his eyes.

"It never was a thing." He leaned back on the wall to try and escape her intense gaze. As much as it made him nervous, he loved the feel of her eyes on him. It meant that she was looking at him and paying attention to him, something which she never did when they were younger.

Lydia watched Isaac trying to alleviate the tension in the cramped hallway. When he leaned back she only stepped closer, demanding to be noticed and paid attention to.

In the same way that Isaac had no idea that Cora was watching him, Lydia didn't realize that Isaac was always paying attention to her. He wasn't looking at her glare, instead looking down the hall towards the room where the meeting was being held, but he was still aware of her distance from him and her eyes glaring at his face.

He turned to look at her then and lost his breath when his eyes connected with her beautiful brown eyes. She was so close to him that he could feel her heat radiating off her tiny body. She was surprised to find herself comforted by his presence. His height made her feel safe and protected, and she uncrossed her arms letting out a huge sigh. With the loss of breath she seemed to sink into herself. She looked like a popped balloon. One second she was alert and in the next she was flat.

Isaac instinctually stepped closer to try and offer her some comfort. He knew that she must be thinking of Jackson from the way her body seemed to drip sadness. To his surprise, she threw her arms around him and burrowed into his warm body with her face. No tears came to stain Isaac's sweatshirt but he still held her close as if she was sobbing into him. His hands found their way into her beautiful red hair while hers encircled his waist. He held her close, closing his eyes to revel in the feel of Lydia pressed against him. Isaac was content to let this moment last as long as she wanted, even if it was forever.

"Isaac?" Scott's voice broke their bubble at the end of the hallway and Lydia quickly released him.

"Yah I'll be right there." He cleared his throat and looked down at Lydia who wouldn't meet his eyes. She was ashamed to have shown this boy her broken heart. She didn't like to show weakness. Lydia was only thankful that _Cora_ hadn't been the one to find them. Although, maybe she would back off of Isaac if she saw them embracing. She didn't know why she cared so much. Only that Cora had no way of knowing Isaac. Although Lydia was aware that she didn't really _know_ Isaac, she still knew his story and her instincts told her to protect him for being hurt. Cora would definitely hurt him.

Everyone's eyes were on them as they both walked back into the room. The walk felt like a walk of shame, although it was doubtful that anyone would accuse them of hooking up.

Allison was having trouble figuring out what Lydia would want with Isaac while Scott was hoping that maybe Lydia was debating giving him a chance.

The only one that didn't rule out them being a couple was Cora. She eyed Isaac carefully while he left Lydia's side to come stand next to Cora again.

Lydia's eyes narrowed at that but she was too emotionally tired to fight it. And Jackson was oozing into her thoughts again. For a while she had been able to forget about him. She had stopped wearing a shirt he had left over her house one night to bed and had stopped opening her phone to check and make sure his number was still in her phone. That number had become easier to resist calling recently. Now, however, all she wanted to do was go home and put on that shirt and check that his number was still there. That he could still call.

"I shouldn't have come here obviously." She spoke quietly, her thoughts on Jackson and what he was doing.

"Lydia, don't be ridiculous." Allison stepped forward to put her arm around her friend. "We want your opinion."

Allison noted the sadness in Lydia's eyes. The fogginess that used to surround her when she was thinking about Jackson was back. Allison had thought that phase was over but apparently not.

"I'm going to bring her home." Allison spoke loudly to the group while keeping a firm hold on Lydia.

"No Allison, I can take myself." Lydia protested feeling like a child being sent to bed because the grownups were talking.

"No, I don't think you can." Allison said looking into Lydia's eyes with concern.

"But, Allison-"

"Not now, Scott."

Lydia knew that Scott wanted Allison to stay. Allison was hugely important to the group and on top of that they had just rekindled their romance, which was a surprise to nobody.

Isaac spoke up then. "You can just stay in my bed. I mean, you did it last time and it was fine."

Allison shot him a grateful look and looked back toward Lydia who shrugged.

"Fine."

Isaac broke away from his spot next to Cora. Cora watched the pair silently, noting the way that Lydia's body seemed to relax when Isaac got near and the way Isaac stood up straighter around her. Nobody else was paying attention to them as Isaac followed Lydia to his room. Cora couldn't help but wonder why it was necessary for Isaac to be there but nobody else questioned it.

"Do you need to borrow sweatpants or anything?" He asked from the doorway as Lydia placed her purse on his nightstand.

She suddenly felt awkward and had no idea why. "No. I can just sleep in my clothes. Hopefully they won't be long anyways."

Isaac nodded and looked around the room, trying to remember if he had left any clothes on the floor. His inspection was met with one t shirt haphazardly tossed on the ground but no old underwear or anything, to his relief.

"Okay. Well, have a nice nap, Lydia."

"This is becoming too much of a habit." She commented as Isaac closed the door for the second time on the beautiful girl in his bed.

**Author's Note: Thank you guys for reading! I love reading your reviews so feel free to leave one!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Is she gone?" Cora asked walking into the main room in the loft where Isaac was currently sitting. He nodded.

"Allison took her home about an hour ago." Cora eyed the clock.

It was midnight now; the meeting had run much later than anybody had imagined. It wasn't even like they managed to solidify anything either. Nobody could decide on a course of action. Cora wanted to go confront the Alpha pack but Derek refused to allow it. Not only would it be putting his only little sister in danger, Derek couldn't imagine a scenario in which the pack would tell them anything about themselves merely through confrontation.

Stiles wanted to go the more practical route. He wanted to look into each member of the Alpha pack's past in hopes that there was some hidden link hidden there that would connect them to Beacon Hills.

Surprisingly for Cora, Allison had actually agreed with her plan to confront them. The girl may look like another priss but Cora was shocked to discover that the real Allison was more of a fighter than a teenage girl. Allison disagreed on one point, however.

Cora's plan was to uncover where the Alphas were staying and surround them, cutting off their link to the world. Eventually they would need supplies and then Derek would confront them and make them tell him what they wanted with him and Beacon Hills. The plan was shaky at best, which Cora could recognize, but it was the best option she saw them having.

Allison may have agreed with the confronting part but she pretty much disagreed with everything else. She wanted to separate them out and do whatever it took to get answers from them. This sprung a debate over how they could possibly get one without alerting the other members of the Alpha pack.

Derek just sat there, refusing to even listen to their ideas. The meeting was finally called off by Derek who began to fear Cora and Allison just going through with their plan without help from anyone else.

"She's tough, right?" Cora asked grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge. Isaac considered the question. Lydia was tough sure, but not in an aggressive way. She used her words.

"Yah. She's tough." Isaac said thinking about how easily Lydia got people to do what she wanted and how resilient she was even after her mind was controlled by Peter. Anyone else would be destroyed by what happened to her but she pushed through without acting affected at all. Nobody at school suspected anything was wrong with Lydia Martin other than the occasional broken nail. They couldn't see the cracks that ran through her sanity like those close to her could. "She's very strong."

Cora considered his answer, twirling the bottle cap on the counter. The clock ticked quietly in the background and they could faintly hear Derek snoring from down the hall. Isaac closed his eyes, taking in the peace of the moment.

He tried to remember a time when he felt as safe and comfortable that he did in that moment. It was difficult but he finally found one, buried in the recess of his brain.

It was only a few months before his dad's death. After an unusually calm night Isaac ventured into the kitchen. He had been sent to bed without dinner for getting a B on his English paper, but that was hardly a harsh punishment in his house. His dad had already gone to bed hours before and Isaac was hungry. He was gathering the ingredients to make a turkey sandwich when he heard his dad enter the kitchen. Silently, he walked over to Isaac. He had flinched, he remembered expecting to be punished but instead his dad began to silently make him the sandwich. When it was done, he placed it in front of him and went back to bed without saying a word. Isaac was shaking as he left, but eating that sandwich he remembered the silence in the house and the calm that had set over him.

Cora watched him with a small smile on her face. He looked so peaceful, much more than he normally did. "I don't think I agree with you." She said breaking the silence.

"Hm?" Isaac mumbled opening his eyes to find Cora staring at him.

"I don't think Lydia is strong." Isaac frowned but said nothing. "She certainly doesn't seem to care about these people. Taking a nap throughout the meeting and all." Cora considered out loud, gauging Isaac's reaction.

Nothing more than a tightening of the jaw and in his eyes was there to indicate that he cared at all about Cora's opinion of Lydia. "She's just in a bad place right now." Isaac protested, coming to Lydia's defense.

"Yah, because that boy left her." Cora responded sharply. Isaac quickly stood up from his seat at the counter. Once standing, he didn't know what he was expecting to do. "A boy leaves a girl and she gets to mope for what, a month maybe? Then she has to return to her regular life and get the hell over it." Cora said roughly, crossing her arms.

"You don't understand." Isaac interjected, raising his voice as he got more annoyed.

"That she got her heart broken? I understand _that_ perfectly, thank you very much." She said, her eyes burning.

"It comes down to a lot more than that." He said with an edge to his voice.

"Oh, I'm sure it does. I'm sure they're _soul mates. _That he was the _love of her life_." She mocked. Cora couldn't understand how he could be getting this worked up. She had been through so much worse. She lost her whole goddamn family in a fire and he thought that Lydia getting dumped by her stupid boyfriend was tragic?

Isaac stepped forward, his eyes blazing. He had this intense need to defend Lydia. She had been through so much worse than a broken heart. Her head had been tampered with and she had spent _months_ thinking that she was crazy or something. She never deserved that. Peter never should have gotten her involved. But Isaac couldn't explain all that to Cora. It wasn't his place, and this wasn't the time.

"Just stop." He warned her, giving her a glare.

"Oh I don't think I will." She smiled at him, confusing Isaac. They had just been fighting and now she was smiling as if this was all some game? He stepped back from her but she only stepped forward again.

"Wha- what are you doing?" He questioned slowly.

"Nothing." She said smiling again.

Derek's door creaked open down the hall and Cora quickly jumped back. Isaac just stared at her in confusion, completely dumbfounded by the change in the conversation. Derek appeared into the room, glaring in the harsh light above the counter.

"What are you two doing up?" He asked suspiciously walking to the fridge to grab water. They both just shrugged. Derek sighed, shaking his head and leaving with the water bottle.

Isaac relaxed when he heard Derek's door close. He didn't know why he was acting like he did something wrong. He was merely talking to Cora. Derek's beautiful little sister who lived right down the hall from him.

Isaac knew that Derek was suspicious of them. He was protective of his little sister and would never want Isaac to go anywhere near him. Isaac never thought of Cora in that way. Yes, she was pretty but she couldn't begin to compare to Lydia. Plus, Cora wouldn't think of him that way. Although, she had been standing awfully close to him when Derek came out of his room. Isaac shook his head of the thoughts and looked over to Cora who was chewing gently on her bottom lip.

"Night." Isaac mumbled, quickly getting out of the room before he could say anything stupid or focus on her lips too much. He shouldn't be thinking of her like that.

X

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Cora shouted at the insistent knocking on their door. It was ten in the morning and she had just gotten back from her morning run. Isaac stumbled sleepily out of his room having been awoken by the pounding on the door. He was still in his pajamas as he eyed Cora.

In a sports bra and spandex pants it was obvious that she had been up for quite some time. How, Isaac had no idea. He was still exhausted and they had gone to bed at about the same time. Sweat was pouring down her body as she yanked open the door.

"Oh. It's you." Cora said unhappily as she was greeted by the face of Lydia Martin. Cora just flat out didn't like the girl. She was too prissy, too unhelpful. Cora didn't understand Lydia's merit to the group. Sure, she was supposedly a super genius or something but so far the only thing she had done was sleep.

"Yep." Lydia answered, popping the p obnoxiously as she looked around the apartment with a grimace on her face. As she spotted Isaac standing toward the hallway her face lost its grimace but didn't exactly turn into a smile either.

"Isaac." She called out to him unnecessarily as he had already seen her. She pushed past Cora into the apartment to make her way towards Isaac.

Cora rolled her eyes as Lydia pushed past her. "I'm going out for a run." She announced before Lydia reached Isaac.

Isaac looked at Cora with confusion. "Didn't you just go on one?"

"I'm going on another." She said sharply and stalked out of the apartment, slamming the door shut.

"What's her problem?" Lydia asked standing before Isaac. He shrugged, his mind more focused on what Lydia was doing here than why Cora needed to go on two runs. She looked around the apartment awkwardly.

"Derek here?" She asked adjusting the purse on her shoulder as she looked back at him.

"No, he's out with Ms. Blake." Lydia's eyebrows rose as she considered this information but made no comment about it. "So, uh, what's up?" Isaac asked, looking down at her.

"I just wanted to apologize for what I did to you last night." Lydia began. Isaac shot her a confused look but said nothing. "I mean…" She faltered at his look. "You, um, obviously have _way_ more things to be broken up about and well," She looked away from his intense stare, trying to formulate the correct words to use.

"Lydia, don't be ridiculous." Isaac said quietly, cutting her off. "Obviously yes, I have been through more intense things in my life. But that does not mean that people around me need to feel ashamed about being crushed by something in their life. My dad died. I am still trying to get over it. But I cannot even imagine how it is dealing with knowing that Jackson is still alive and running around London." Lydia winced. "I'm sorry!" He said quickly, shutting his mouth.

"No, no, don't be. You're right." She sucked a breath in and paused before continuing. "But it would be a million times worse if he were dead. I know it sounds so awful, such a stupid typical girl thing to do but now at least I can imagine that one day…" She trailed off ashamed of her thoughts.

Isaac wanted to shake her, to tell her that what Jackson had done to her was awful and he didn't deserve her thoughts of a happy ending. Instead he gave her a small sad smile. She saw his smile, but more than that she saw what was behind it.

"Yes, he was awful and he was controlling and all that but Isaac, there are times that people never got to see. When he was caring and gentle and just loving and perfect." She whispered the last word, closing her eyes, holding onto it even as it escaped her lips. As if saying the words would make the good memories more tangible and the bad memories float away.

"Lydia," Isaac began, waiting for her to open her eyes past the images of Jackson which were undoubtedly going through her mind. He wanted to look into her eyes when he talked to her. Her beautiful, captivating eyes. The ones that made him second guess everything he said because he wanted to use the right words and make her light up with happiness or laughter. When she didn't open them immediately, he repeated her name.

"Lydia," More in a whisper this time to lull her out of whatever place she had disappeared into. She slowly opened them, her eyes shining from either tears that had yet to fall, or memories that still stayed trapped behind them. "You deserve so much more than that." Isaac began, speaking earnestly and looking directly into her eyes. "You deserve somebody that is willing to love you wholeheartedly so that you never have to deal with an awful side. You shouldn't have to explain to others how somebody loves you; they should be able to see it every time that you are with him. Every time that he looks at you, you should feel loved and cherished and _wanted_. Anyone that doesn't make you feel that way isn't worth a second glance."

The water escaped her eyes then, travelling down her cheeks. Isaac instinctively reached out and stroked her cheeks, taking the moisture away with his motion. She closed her eyes again, leaning into his touch as he marveled at the softness of her cheek beneath his hands. Her hands reached up to rest over his and her head got heavier in his hands as she rested it in his hands. She just felt so _safe_. He didn't even second guess himself when he wanted to pull her into his arms. He just did it. And she came willingly, pressed against his chest as she buried her face in his chest.

"I'm just so _lonely_ without him." She mumbled against him. Isaac said nothing, only pulling her closer to him. Lydia was comforted by his arms around her. She listened to his steady heartbeat and pushed back the tears in her eyes. She had come here to apologize for losing herself in front of him and had only managed to do it again. "I'm sorry." She said pushing back. He let her go reluctantly.

"Don't be. I like holding you." He admitted it shyly, looking away from her as he said it. She smiled a real smile then.

"Thank you." She whispered and Isaac knew that she didn't expect an answer. "I'm gonna go now." She said still smiling as she made her way to the door.

"Bye, Lydia." He said still smiling at her.

"See you, Isaac." She said smiling as she left him alone in the apartment; a smile still plastered on his face as he thought of her in his arms.


End file.
